Master of Lies
by 6pathsofpein
Summary: Four years after Pein's partially succesful invasion, Konoha, unable to keep up with the other hidden villages, turns to the strongest shinobi in the village, Naruto, for help. But appearances can be deceiving, and that is never more apparent then now.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Chapter one in all it's albeit limited glory. Enjoy, and if you don't, please don't flame. Thank you.**

"You have one minute to decide the rest of your life," **(1)** a large blonde man said as he straddled another man in his own house, "at the end of which, you will either live or die." To accentuate his point, he pulled out an old fashioned stop-watch, and clicked the timer.

The man under him writhed and twisted in vain, desperately trying to be rid of his captor's iron grip. When ten seconds had ticked by, slowly, agonizingly, the man finally stopped thrashing.

"Where are the keys to your treasury?" the large blonde man questioned, his voice a deep baritone. When the seconds kept ticking, and he had no response from his captive, he slowly brought his knees together, in effect, bit by bit, crushing his ribs into his chest cavity.

The man on the bed cried out as the first of his ribs cracked under the pressure. As the blonde's legs kept tightening, the man made several pathetic wheezes, which could be construed as attempts at speech.

The blonde loosened up a small amount to allow speech, and taking an off-hand glance at the watch, noticed this man had less then thirty seconds left of his life.

"U-u-un-under t-the t-television i-in the r-roo-m to th-e left of th-is on-e." The pathetic wheezing mess beneath the blonde man would lose his life, as it had taken up his thirty seconds to say that.

What a shame. If he were only a year older, he would be untouchable, and he wouldn't have been able to issue the ultimatum, as the security would have been top-notch, as opposed to the hairless pansies he had dealt with on his way up.

The quivering, grimacing mass of flesh below him writhed again, as he had to dig into his deep pockets to retrieve his favorite tool, in the process pushing more of the man's ribs into his lungs.

The blonde man pulled out a pistol, affixed with a silencer, and inserted the muzzle into the other man's mouth, and set it off, simultaneously tearing a hole out of the back of the skull, and coating the surrounding white pillows in a fine sheen of gore.** (2)**

The blonde man extricated himself from the bloody corpse, and made his way to the place specified by the unlucky daimyo's son. He ripped the television from its place inside a large oaken cabinet, and swiped the long, thin keys that would unlock the treasury. He would rather go in the proper and relatively quiet way, then opposed to blindly destroying the doors and making off with as much as he could carry. The he of ten years ago would have done no less.

As he fitted the keys into the lock, turning it, and in turn, the tumblers, he pondered his past self. So naïve, and utterly foolish, was he that it sickened the man. Such were the thoughts of a trained killer, who had both known about and embraced his demons readily.

The thick plated steel door open, he got a look inside. It had a high ceiling, and the jewels and precious metals almost reached the top. Such was the spoils of a daimyo. He created no less than ten thousand kage bushin, and had each of them in turn open a blank scroll the size of a baby carriage. They, all ten thousand created ten thousand large containment scrolls. The clones, done with their seal crafting, turned their attention to the massive pile of riches, and began carting large piles down, soon to be sealed in their recently created storage scrolls.

The man, even summoning so many clones, looked not even the slightest bit winded, and instead looked like he could do that at least another ten times, which is what he did once he realized he had vastly underestimated the size of the pile. With a hundred thousand clones, and the same number of large storage scrolls, the riches were quickly carted on top of the paper, which the clones, with a handseal put inside the empty space of the scroll. Within a half an hour, the pile was mostly gone, with the last bit being unusable and ill-fated metals that were either too brittle, or too pliable.

Now the large army of clones, their riches all in the scrolls, waited for the original to work his magic. The blonde man pulled out a scroll from the pouch on his backside the size of his thumb. He opened it with a flourish, and swiped some of his blood onto it, courtesy of a bite to his finger. An enormous cloud of smoke bloomed like a sakura tree, and a scroll the size of a small house was revealed. Using chakra, the blonde carried his small drop of blood to the rest of the other scrolls, coating it against the outside, and then, quickly, with a show of titanic strength unrolled the giant scroll, and then, with an even bigger cloud of smoke, the scrolls numbering one hundred thousand vanished into the large scroll. Arcane writing immediately covered every inch of the titanic scroll, which was promptly rolled up, and then cast back inside the tiny scroll, where it was placed into the blondes pouch.

His job done, the blonde gave a final cursory look over the treasury, or what remained of it. He had to admit, with the treasure gone, the room in its entirety was many times the size of the hokage tower. For the largest treasury in the world, it was sure easy to get into. Ironic, really.

With that thought in mind, the blonde dashed off at an inhuman speed towards Konoha.

**XXXXXXXXX**

**XXXXXXXXX**

Tsunade was worried. Worried would be a definite understatement. This was full-blown frantic worried. She had sent the best ANBU they had on a suicide mission, and it was all her fault.

In her misery, she barely heard the messenger chunin at her door. As such, her depressed mumbling was taken to be the signal to enter. When Tsunade looked up, seeing a chunin inches from her face, she did what came naturally. She decked him. The hapless chunin blew through the wall and smacked into the hard stone of the tower. She heard something crack, and it wasn't the wall. Irritated, she also failed to notice a person stepping around the rubble and into her office, until, he too was inches from her face.

This time, she _attempted_ to do what came naturally, only for the man to catch her fist like it was a feather. Looking into his face, she realized who this was, and what he prevented her from doing. She blushed in embarrassment, and apologized.

Almost instantly, her countenance shifted into a persona ordinary kages would kill to have. "Report, Fox." She said sternly, alluding to his white and red ANBU fox mask, the one she issued him personally after defeating the captain of his squad.

"Mission successful, Hokage-sama." The man said tonelessly, both breaking the Kage's heart, and reaffirming his decision.

"Good to hear, Fox. I trust you have the package?"

Fox nodded, and pulled out the tiny scroll he had used to house the enormous one. He handed it to Tsunade, who took it with a bittersweet smile, and a regretful look. She looked at him, and was truly saddened. 'You've changed. You've changed so much.'

Indeed, the former loud, joyful prankster was no more. In his place stood an embattled, bitter tool of the village, a true shinobi. A rare breed, these days.

Showing the only emotion he had shown for years past, though it was behind his mask, Naruto held out a similar scroll to Tsunade. Allowing himself to slip, he said, "Ba-chan."

Tsunade snapped up, and sat ramrod straight, as if stricken. A shimmering layer of tears appeared in her eyes, and she shakily said, "Naruto."

She leaned over the desk, arms outstretched, tears brimming. Naruto leaned into those arms, arms that could heal or destroy at a moment's notice.

Caught in a tight embrace, Naruto could do naught but stand there as Tsunade, one of the three shinobi of legend, and the Hokage, wept into his shoulder.

After ten minutes of that, Naruto had departed, leaving her the scroll from both his mission, and one of his own important information.

Naruto, now unmasked, and without his armor, stood atop the Shodaime's head, whilst looking over the village.

Pein's invasion four years ago had not come without great cost to Konoha. Still, even four years later, a quarter of the village remained completely barren and devoid of life, due to Pein's last stand, and his last ace in the hole.

He had summoned the king of hell statue, and using the combined might of the so-far captured eight bijuu, managed to level a little over a quarter of Konoha. Those just outside the blast radius suffered severe radiation poisoning, leading to a plummet to an already dangerously low morale. With the outbreak of radiation poisoning, and birth defects due to said poisoning, villagers stopped procreating, leading an already low supply of shinobi ragged. Everyday jonin were now used commonly for S-ranked missions, and, as a substitute to the chunin exam, genin had to complete two A-ranks back to back to get their desired rank.

The shinobi bars had been packed to the limits, and the mission office was now resorting to the draft, due to shinobi who refused to go on missions. In short, Konoha was screwed, and everybody knew it. This was no longer a question of how, but when. Naruto himself had thought they would last two more years, at the most.

Tsunade believed him, due to his unreal luck at gambling, which she, being the Legendary Sucker, sucked at.

Naruto briefly toyed with ending the village now, as opposed to drawing it out. Better to kill a suffering animal, than to end up suffering yourself, which Naruto decidedly was not.

No, he decided. He had given Tsunade that extra scroll for a reason, and the specified time had yet to be met. He didn't want to kill the old hag, at least not yet. She still had her uses.

Naruto, standing atop the first hokage's head, grinned like a Cheshire cat. He would bleed this country dry. It was his way. Acting the part of the complete loser, and then when everyone was secure in their belief that he was a failure, striking the coup de grâce. Though as opposed to the latter, he would not be merciful, for the last time he was, he was almost killed. He would drag this on for as long as he could.

After all, time was not an issue. He had all the time in the world.

**A/N: Author's note.**

**(1): "You have one minute to decide the rest of your life." A quote from the movie "Two days in the valley." Good movie. You should see it some time.**

**(2): Due to recent goings on in Iwa, guns are now available for ninja, though they are incredibly expensive. Like renting a convention center for a week kind of expensive, as well as the fact that they're extremely rare. Naruto only has one because he stole it from Iwa in his last S-class mission, and because I like the opening scene in "Two days in the Valley."**

**Hope you like the chapter. Remember, I don't get paid for this. The least I could get was some recognition. Please push the magic button that says "review" and tell me what you do and don't like. I am always open for constructive criticism, so feel free.**

**Later,**

**6paths**


	2. A scintillating excursion

**A/N (author's note): It's actually quite funny how this came out (the chapter). I, being a person in his late teens, and in a crowded household, made further cramped by my visiting uncle, had to share my room with said uncle. I, being a night-owl, who usually posts new chapters in the wee hours of the night, typed this entire chapter with my uncle snoring right below me. I myself have no idea how that situation got me into a writing mood, but it did. Anyway, enjoy.**

It was the day after Naruto's return from his mission, that the village would see the likes of Uchiha Itachi wandering around the town. Though no-one saw his approach, sans one, he made a grand entrance, assaulting the Leaf's best ANBU commander in broad daylight. Said commander had been going out to get groceries, when he was engulfed in black fire that burned like a miniature sun, blistering people up to ten yards away, and immolating several buildings.

Itachi never heard the soft pop that told the story of the incident to the one who created it.

Within seconds, a blond missile slammed into Itachi with the force of a freight train, kunai out, adding damage to the hit. The slate haired Uchiha was knocked back ten yards, where he slammed into a tree, groin first. Bystanders winced, but were shocked when the Itachi that hit the tree burst into ravens.

Itachi lunged from the shadows of a building, wakizashi out, but was intercepted by a kunai knife that was buried between his eyes up to the hilt.

Naruto walked up to the corpse and said, "Pathetic Sharingan. So focused on tactics and subtlety, they forget the obvious."

The bystanders were in awe, which quickly turned to panic as Itachi again burst into ravens, which flew up and blocked their sight for an instant.

In that instant, Itachi had emerged from the earth behind Naruto, and palming a kunai, shoved it into the ANBU commander's temple.

It was that scene that the villagers laid witness to, and such was their shock that when Naruto burst into a hazy red aura, and appeared behind Itachi, spearing him upon his kusari-gama, that they couldn't believe it.

The village pariah, the one endearingly referred to as 'Demon-brat' for most of his life, had actually _protected_ the village, instead of living up to his nick-name. Needless to say, many a villager came home that night greatly shamed, much to the consternation of their 'Demon hating' relatives.

The ANBU commander, with Itachi's body speared upon his kusari-gama, kicked the corpse off of the blade, where it fell to the ground soundlessly. You had to give him that. Itachi had unreal grace.

The blond beheaded the body, and incinerated the remains with a low class fire jutsu. He sealed the head in a scroll the size of his hand, with several eye-shaped markings on the sides.

He beckoned to the shadows of a nearby building, from which, a lone ANBU appeared, and followed.

They walked in silence until the village gates had long vanished behind them, upon which, the lone ANBU got in his commander's face and looked directly into the eyeslits of his superior's mask.

Within seconds, both were in the illusionary pocket dimension created by the Tsukuyomi.

"How long will this last?"

"A day at most."

"Good. That is time enough."

The ANBU commander took off his mask, and motioned for his underling to do the same.

The lone ANBU took off his raven mask and spoke in a dull monotone.

"It is your turn, brother."

"It is not yet time. Be patient, Raven. You of all should know, that anything can happen, at any time, or any place."

A dull pop, and a dissipating smoke cloud told the ANBU that he had ensnared a Kage-Bushin in Tsukuyomi.

The man then sat down, and meditated, not wanting to waste chakra breaking his own technique, and deciding that the day spent in Tsukuyomi could at least be productive.

The man with hair of obsidian grinned madly. At last, a worthy foe to measure his capacity against! And his brother no less! O how man would rue the day that Naruto became powerful.

**XXXXXXXXX**

**XXXXXXXXX**

While a day had passed in Itachi's illusion, it took several seconds in the real world, so when Naruto disappeared with a yellow flash of light, Itachi was already out of his nightmare-realm. He could barely see out of his left eye, and had a massive migraine, but was aware enough of his surroundings to notice his 'brother' disappearing in the signature flash of the Hiraishin.

Itachi, weakened, but still functional, began using short bursts of Shunshin to travel to Amegakure, where Madara, angry deluded Madara, was waiting.

Or he thought he was traveling to Amegakure, until his world melted away into nothing, and then bloomed into a throng of color that hurt his eyes. A few seconds later, when he could see marginally better, he noticed his brother above his prone form, kusari-gama raised.

"Brother, what are you doing?" Itachi asked, frowning, and slightly worried.

"Fulfilling my part of the bargain." The blond replied tonelessly.

"Bu-" Itachi couldn't get out that sentence, as the kusari-gama rent through his vocal cords, making speech impossible, and turning his former speech into a pathetic gurgle.

Naruto looked emotionlessly at Itachi, and spoke, "You asked to be free of Madara. Now you are. Goodbye Itachi." He slammed his heavy combat boots upon the Uchiha's ruined throat, which brought a certain satisfying thrashing from Itachi. Naruto twisted viciously, and Itachi's head separated from his body, the look on the Uchiha's face a mixture of betrayal, shock, horror, and…satisfaction?

Naruto snorted derisively, and brought out the scroll with the 'Uchiha's' head in it. A seal master, at a glance, which Naruto was, would be able to say that there was nothing in it, and he would be right, as Naruto sealed the real Itachi's head in it.

Naruto suddenly gagged and spat out a dark, thick liquid onto the Uchiha's corpse, quickly lit a match, and tossed it onto the clansmen's husk. **(1)**

The body burned quickly, and Naruto was left alone, as nothing was left but ash. A casual brush of his hand sent the ashes into Sunagakure, riding upon the eternal winds.

Naruto smirked at the irony. Wind to feed the fires of the Uchiha… Oh if Madara was here, would he be stroking his ego…

Enough of that, Naruto chided himself. Senile fools do not _need_ egos, and so he shouldn't have done it, but, he guessed there was no need to cry over spilt milk. **(2)**

He vanished in the signature flash of yellow light, on to the bounty house. **(3)**

**A/N (Author's note):**

**(1)That whole sequence came on a whim for me, and I rather like the way it came out. Pun! Umm, about the whole fight with 'Itachi' in Konoha, all done thanks to Naruto's Kitsune genshou (Kitsune illusions[more on that later])! Same with Itachi thinking he's going to Amegakure. The only way that could have worked is when Itachi had his Sharingan deactivated after Tsukuyomi, as he is exhausted. That's when Naruto took his chance. He did that because he doesn't like being indebted to people, and needed a quick-fix. While we're on about the Konoha fight, Naruto **_**does**_** use a kusari-gama, but it didn't get much love this chapter. It will later. **

**(2): Kind of confusing. This struck me a day after my uncle left, and I had to add it. For those who don't get it (most of you. Usually no-one gets my references): Madara is in Amegakure, which is on the way to Suna from where Naruto is (fact!). When the winds pick up, and Madara always has his Sharingan activated (cuz he can!), he'll see Itachi's ashes in the wind, and will smirk, because Naruto fueled the fires of the Uchiha [his rage, even though he's smirking {cuz he's fucked up in the head}] with his wind. (He knows the wind is Naruto's because of the unique shade of color his chakra has [Deep dark black…])**

**Whew! Hard to explain! Now on to (3)**

**(3): Yes, he can use seal-less Hiraishin…**

**Can anyone say god-like?**

**If anyone is wondering (you probably aren't, but I'll say it anyway), I draw my inspiration heavily from music, and my encyclopedia-like mind (which helps so I don't have to look up episodes or manga chapters to make sure my facts are correct.), but mostly music. For this whole chap, I listened to **_**Indestructible **_**by **_**Disturbed**_**. **

**Ja!**

**Six paths**


	3. Rewarding contact

**A/N: I know nobody ever reads author's notes, but you should this time. This chapter is very gory, and generally disturbing. That means NO KIDS ALLOWED. It's rated M for a reason people.**

The Sandaime, while still in office, and until the day he died, would forever view Konoha's resident Jinchuriki's actions through a pair of extremely thick, and enormously large rose-colored glasses. Naruto could do no wrong in his eyes, even if the deed was wrong, or in question with moral standards. That changed the day he died, and realized the blond was a hopeless case, when he was skinned alive by said blond, while he had been peacefully sleeping, and enjoying his long-earned retirement, no less.

Naruto spared nothing. He took a kunai, and his kusari-gama to the old-man's flesh, and began the sickening ritual that the wolves practice in reverence. **(1)**

Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Shinobi no Kami, in the few seconds before blade tested itself against flesh, had the acute sensation of total agony when he realized he had been fooled from the very start. He should have realized, himself being a shinobi; they were born in the shadows, and deception was their code, and Naruto was more-so, more than any shinobi, as he had the backing of eons of knowledge and experience swirling in the recesses of his mind, that which he drew from. Tears sprung from his face as he was mutilated beyond recognition.

The most agonizing thing to accept, was that Naruto hadn't changed. He simply never _was_ an idiot, never a dobe, and he never cared- _A flash of blond, and the screeching death-rattle of a true snake among the reeds, was the only warning Sarutobi got, before his enemy in the thrice-damned purple energy field ceased to be. Naruto ripped Orochimaru's face off, and skinned him, then donned the disgusting epidermis, as if it were his own. Sarutobi stood staring at a perfect replica of his former student. The venerable Kage shivered at a slight twitch from the Jinchuriki: such movement in dead flesh sickened him. Before he knew it, his body was run clean-through, and his ribs bashed in from a kusari-gama blade and weight, respectively. As the Kage slid off his weapon, the blond mouthed 'shit' before the entire scene vanished, and was replaced by the sight of a fleeing Orochimaru, and a Kage who was twitching, prone, on the rooftop. The medics later that day concluded that the Kage had suffered a stroke, and was no longer fit for active duty_-

of anyone, except himself. Sarutobi winced from the repressed memory, which the medics had explained might be a side-effect of the stroke, and more tears spilled.

Naruto sneered in disgust. The most powerful Kage in history, save the Yondaime Hokage, was whimpering and crying like a spoiled child. Naruto likened the scene to candy he had taken from Hyuuga Hanabi once, as the image was remarkably similar, sans the gallons of blood, and the stench-Sarutobi had lost control of his body soon after he started-which would have revealed the blond had he not cast a Kitsune-Genshou prior to his arrival that muffled sight and scent to an indistinguishable level.

Naruto was done within a minute, and the last thing to do was the most gruesome. He reached toward the crying visage of the hokage,-tears flowed past Sarutobi's cheeks and neck, which was exposed muscle, mixing with the blood and creating a sickening orange fluid that pooled in the old man's jugular notch, and when that overflowed, slid down his naked sternum in a most painful fashion. The only reason the Kage was still conscious was that Naruto willed it, and Sarutobi, being who he was, felt he owed it to the boy his successor and predecessor made life difficult for, to remain so.-found a flap of skin just below the venerable man's chin, and in an incredibly retched display, ripped his face off, great gobbets of blood spraying everywhere. Orochimaru himself would feel his hands growing clammy, had he witnessed this. The sadistic glee which Naruto set about the task did little to help.

The reason this was so disturbing was because there _were_ set methods and techniques to go about skinning someone (Orochimaru had invented at least one), which Naruto promptly ignored, and with no real set way, just _hacked_ into the old man's flesh until it had mostly come off. He seemed to be enjoying himself, but who could blame him? In a village that mostly hated his guts, could he really be blamed for how he turned out? That didn't make sense though, as he had nothing of a real childhood, and wasn't really any sort of regular brat at that age, so how could he turn out a certain way, when he was already set on his course? **(2) **

Naruto had finished his bloody ritual, and was about to clean up the body, when to his immense surprise, he realized the Kage was still conscious! This was amazing, as never had a human possessed such mental fortitude, as to be skinned alive, and remain conscious. Naruto, without his mask, which he found pointless, as everyone knew him by sight, rubbed at the stubble below his nose. He deliberated on trying something experimental, and whether he would be merciful. He decided on the latter of both options.

With that in mind, Naruto jammed his kunai into the former Kage's trachea, and set about opening a link he had made when the Kyuubi was sealed. **(3)**

Taking forth but a small portion (as much as he could summon) of the Shinigami's power, which coated his hand like black oil, he slammed it upon Sarutobi's chest and murmured, "Kouin!" **(4)**

It was as if Sarutobi had Naruto's unnatural healing, as skin regenerated over his exposed muscle, arteries were sewn back together, and muscle grew tighter, and less slack. Sarutobi, through Naruto's technique had traveled back 40 years, to his prime.

Naruto grinned at Sarutobi's emotionless face. "I'll give you purpose, and for that, you will _love _me."

Naruto took out a specially made storage scroll, which had certain dimensions, and showed it to the Kami no Shinobi. "This will be your life, and you will enjoy your life. Ironically, the more people think, the less they tend to enjoy their lives, so you will do _no_ thinking at all." He paused in his monologue to see that he had yet to register in Sarutobi's mind. Maybe he _had_ traveled back 40 years, where his sage-like knowledge was no longer required. Sarutobi no longer recognized him. This was further evidenced by the primate summoner's stoic stare.

Naruto coated his hand with a thin film of chakra, and swiped it across the scroll. The assembled writing on the outside was drawn to Naruto's palm, where it tumbled around listlessly, utterly incomprehensible. The moment they made any sense, and had shaped a word as pure coincidence, Naruto's chakra pulsed in the direction of Sarutobi, and before he could even think about moving out of the way, the arcane writing slapped onto his skin like a red-hot cattle brand. Sarutobi howled, and the bond between seal and flesh was complete.

The retired hokage, turned young again, slumped over, and smacked his hair-covered head against the floor. Naruto guessed that it would have been funnier if Sarutobi had been completely bald, and as old as he was before Naruto started his ritual.

A creature of knowledge and habit, Naruto quickly remembered the stench, and burned the blood, but not before taking a vial of the suff, and other assorted bodily items that would make a civilian turn green, then purple, and then very very dead.

Once Naruto had burned the blood into ash, he cleaned the former old-man's skin, and generally made it smell not like the blood, but of the man himself, which was not hard considering, he was lying on the floor in front of him. He quickly donned his 'monkey-suit', and shut the door behind him, but not before he put Sarutobi into bed, and placed an illusion over him to make sure he looked old. As he traveled the Hokage's estate, he thought he might be able to get used to this. Everyone treated him with respect, and he received no lip, which was a relief. Naruto really hadn't read up on 'old man acting skills pt. 1' for this occasion, so he was glad no-one talked to him.

He reached the personal vault of the Hokage, where the security had _drastically_ increased since he had last stolen the forbidden scroll. He pressed his palm up to the scanner, and passed through the door, which slid like oil upon glass. He reached the inner sanctum, as it was referred to by the Nidaime, and gazed upon the assorted scrolls.

Naruto was smart enough to realize that the forbidden scroll was just a front. Honestly, who advertises the most powerful of jutsu as being in the forbidden scroll? Honestly, if there was anything Kakashi was ever right about, it was that ninja thrived in underneath the underneath, which generally translated to, ninja use deception more then they do straight action. That was for samurai.

There were six shelves, each a foot apart, which meant they were six feet from hitting the ceiling. There were six jutsu classes, E, D, C, B, A, S, which meant that the scrolls on the bottom shelf were S-class, and worked in descending order, on ascending position. There were five weapons of power hidden among the scrolls, which could only be brought out with the Hokage's blood. Naruto resolved to find these weapons if it took all night, which was why he immediately placed another Kitsune-genshou upon the vault, as poring over scrolls, even the retired Hokage could be cast into doubt and suspicion.

Using the blood of the vial, he started unsealing scrolls left and right, as there were only so many. He quickly found what he was looking for.

The first weapon, was of polished obsidian, and was recognized as the Kuro-kugi **(5)**, which had supposedly come from one of Nibi's shed claws, which could slice through diamond, as if it were rice-paper.

The second, Naruto realized, were a set of blades that were to go over his boots. Said blades curved with his foot, and could cut through silk, just by placing the clothing upon the blade. He noticed that they would be particularly painful, if he decided to kick someone when he had them on.

The third, was, strangely enough, another kusari-gama, but was of considerably better make, and had a longer chain, which was why Naruto placed his old weapon back in the scroll. He would laugh if someone took it out, and thought it was a legendary weapon.

The fourth weapon was a scythe that was as tall as he was, and the blade, situated at the top, was three feet long, and at the heel, a half-foot spike stuck out the opposite direction of the blade. The entire pole the blade was situated on was of black marble. In a word, it was death.

The fifth weapon, once, thousands of years ago, that had been a hidden farm tool, while not conventional, was a set of tonfa, with serrated wakizashi blades stuck on, like the blades of ice-skates.

Naruto grinned like a madman. His eons old knowledge supplied him with the know-how to use the weapons, but he didn't realistically think he could use them all at the same time. Not unless he had six hands, that could reach for a distance of at least two meters.

**XXXXXXXXX**

**XXXXXXXXX**

In the Sandaime's room, an empowered Sarutobi woke up. The seal had made his mind cloudy, and incapable of higher level thinking, yet he was able to control his body with simple commands-anything too complex, and he would simply freeze-, and took himself to the bathroom mirror. He saw his face, unmarked by liver spots or wrinkles, but was unable to appreciate the image, due to his ape-like thought processes. He saw a symbol on his face, though he could not decipher its meaning. If Sarutobi were himself, he would know that, of all the coincidental words that could have formed, he wore "Trust" on his forehead with pride, never to know how much of a strange sense of humor Fate had.

**XXXXXXXXX**

**A/N: Yes, Sarutobi survived the Sand/Sound invasion, but had to retire.**

**(1): I said last chapter that no-one gets my references, and you probably won't either. It's an allusion to 'a wolf in sheep's clothing'**

**(2): More on this later. Not really sure how to bring out this plot-device without creating **_**major**_** holes. Rest assured, this is a big reason Naruto is the way he is.**

**(3): Not as big as (2) but also has to do with the above.**

**(4): Kouin (time, or Father time, can be taken either way)**

**(5): I don't pretend to know Japanese, people, so, if you're Japanese, and take offense to me 'slandering your language', remember, that I am a teenager, a rather stubborn one at that, and you will have to make a **_**pretty**_** convincing argument that I messed up your language for me to change it.**

**By the way, I didn't pick those weapons because I have a Ninja Gaiden fetish. Well, maybe I do…but still, that was not my reason for picking them. The whole thing about the number of shelves, and number of feet left before they touch the ceiling, was, as a matter of fact, inspired by my snoring uncle (also mentioned in chapter 2). You see, he snores in a cycle, with six different disgusting and gunky sounds he makes before he starts over again, so thank him for that bit, and for the love of god REVIEW!!! **

**Seriously, when I see how many hits I get per chapter versus the # of reviews, I want to go murder someone. I didn't get ANY for ch.2. I understand if you are borrowing your parent's computer for this, or are at an internet café, or don't have an account, etc, but those who have no problem with reviewing, and simply don't because they don't want to take 10 seconds out of their day to say 'good job', make me honestly angry. Are you THAT lazy? Click the damn button that says review! And yes, I am bullying you into reviewing. Get over it. Seriously, what is this world coming to? **

**That felt good. Anyway, about the disturbing tone of this chapter, the summary DOES say EVIL NARUTO. Just warnin' you cuz I don't want grief about it. You had your warning. **

**Jan e!**

**SixPaths**


	4. Chapter 4

**Sorry this came out after so long, but now that it has, rejoice! Or not. I have a reason though…which involves several long 350,000+ word fics that will remain unmentioned, and the **_**magnificent**_** new The Killers album. My favorite? SPACEMAN!! If you're into alternative and that crap, this album's for you. Also, I have been held up by the scary depressing work of Leonard Cohen, namely Bird on the Wire. HEAVY shit. Anyway, I also rewrote this chap a total of FOUR times, due to dissatisfaction in my own writing. Well, here you go. Starts with a flashback to flesh out details.**

There were no clouds on the Night of Blood, no formations of mobile cotton in the sky. A howl that shook the world shattered the calm, and pierced the stratosphere with its intensity. A loud shrill screech rent the air, and a miniature sun blotted out the horizon, while time and space slowed to a stand still.

Eyes melted from their sockets like obscene liquid candy from glimpsing the thing. It stood the color of diluted blood, a contemptuous zit upon the landscape. It was the Kyuubi no Kitsune.

XXxxXX

The Yondaime stood atop his summon, a gargantuan toad, Gamabunta, and knew terror. He…would seal…that...into his son? His son, caul just removed, umbilical chord freshly cut, lay in his arms, a farm tool compared to the weapons around him. _Not for-_

(He came home that night utterly exhausted, his seemingly endless toils to develop a way to stop the beast [It's now ten miles away," The Sandaime's voice was grave, and his face was carved of wood. "I hope you know what that means. I, in my old age, am incapable. Find a way."] that was days away. He was greeted by the sight of a weeping Kushina.

"Look, I don't have a choice! The village is in danger. This is no time to be selfish!" A frustrated grief-saturated…_weak_ cry tore itself from his throat.

"Do we still have some of that sake from your parent's house?" His voice was ever so small. Much too small for him. For Minato.

A slow nod and, "I'll go get it."

He was too tired t protest that she shouldn't be moving around much while pregnant. She emerged a minute later with her own cup and disappeared into the bedroom.

Quiet sobs could be heard, if one listened enough. Minato stood there for another ten minutes, and when the sobs had subsided into steady breathing, eased himself off of the couch. He went into the kitchen, and discovered his cup empty, never having been filled. 'Cute, real cute.' He thought dourly, but crumpled moments later. He didn't mean that.

He filled the cup to the brim, popped five aspirin into his mouth, and drank it down. 'Christ, I'm a terrible person.' He nearly broke down, but caught himself.

XXxxXX

In the delivery room, his son had emerged. He had the baby in hand, and turned to leave, bile rising in his throat. He felt a wide-eyed stare on his back, and turned to see what truly began the Night of Blood.

Kushina stumbled towards him, blood flowing from her hospital gown, and splashing upon the floor in a sick display. "Why?" She began, the wide-eye stare remaining. "Why do this to our baby?" Her eyes grew bloodshot, and a terrified "WHY?!" rent the relative calm of the hospital like a hot knife through butter.

Frantic nurses rushed into the room, and Minato lost sight of his wife, his son's mother, and the woman who dared ask 'why?' in this crisis. She never saw the hot angry tears streaming down his face, never saw his sorrow, his grief, and mistook it as intent to harm her child. A mother can never disobey her instincts, and must protect her child, sometimes even from the father.

Minato strode out of the hospital, his wife's blood coating his cape, and sorrow covering his visage-)

_Not for long._

Minato wiped the tears from his face harshly. Time to act. It was time to save his village and doom his son.

The Kyuubi was only a quarter mile off, easily visible, and unable to counterattack.

As Minato drew the seals upon his child's skin, eliciting giggles from the baby, he was struck by the beauty of his child. How serene; how innocent; how unsuspecting of anything that would wish it harm; utterly guileless; such a stark contrast from the large terror that personified the evils and misdeeds in the world his child was.

The beast was now a few hundred yards off, flashes and brilliant explosions danced across his visions like waking phantoms.

He began the hand-seals, the God of Death materializing behind him. A void of _nothing_ wrapped its oily tentacles around him, making him real, and imprisoning him.

From the corner of his eye, Minato caught movement originating from the baby in his arms. The child, Naruto, had extended his hand, almost enough to reach the ends of the Death God's robe…And he touched it. Nothing happened. Minato sighed in relief, but saw that Naruto's hand had pulled away a chunk of black semi-matter that danced around his palm, mesmerizing the infant.

Minato felt the void again, this time in full force. He looked down, and saw the Death God's hand emerging from his chest, but felt no pain, only nothingness. A deep abyss where light was absorbed, and matter was meaningless.

The emergent arm stretched impossibly, where it found refuge in the Fox's chest. A tremendous pull was felt, and the beast's soul was ripped from its refuge of living energy.

The seals already inked on, Minato only needed to seal it in his son, the Shiki Fuujin working in conjunction with the Hakke no Fuuin Shiki, and the Shisou Fuuin.

But, something went wrong, terribly so. It started with a soft red glow emanating from the infant's stomach, rapidly spreading to envelop his whole body.

As the Yondaime slumped, using the last bit of his strength, he placed Naruto down, while he fell full down onto the toad's head.

He could only watch from his peripheral vision, as the red cloud grew, now over six feet tall. It dissipated slowly as if a wall of flowers blown away, revealing a hunched man.

_Who is this? _

With growing terror, the Yondaime realized he'd just given the beast his son.

_Not for long._

The phrase echoed in his head, a nightmarish lullaby that would haunt his dreams forevermore.

The man whom Minato was recognizing in his mounting horror stood fully, a solid six feet, lean, broad shouldered, but completely nude. The Adonis looked back into his father's eyes, peering questioningly into his psyche, thoughts brushed away and laid bare. A look of comprehension dawned on the blonde's visage, and he stared regretfully upon his form. He had no childhood. He was born a man, a true Jinchuriki, the power of the human sacrifice.

Naruto wept as his eyes swept over his own body. He shot an accusatory glance filled with so much hurt and pain Minato couldn't help but flinch, mouthing,

_How could you?_

Minato couldn't stop himself from asking the same thing. He couldn't listen to his wife, never considered the consequences of his heroism. Now that he had, it was much too late. What was done was done, as evidenced by the drooling apparition behind him.

Naruto waved an angry hand at the God of Death, the black, mesmerizing energy from before coating his hand.

_No._

The Shinigami gazed intensely at the former child before it, and released the floodgates. The energy tore through everything in place, with the exception of Minato (rapidly fading) Naruto, and Gamabunta. Trees turned white, rocks into sand, and animals into their original elements. Naruto barely stood, the only reason being that he couldn't look_ weak_ in front of a God.

_N-not yet._

The apparition behind the Fourth reined in its dark energy and turned away, the petrified forest and wildlife remaining.

Naruto involuntarily shivered and looked upon Minato's pathetic form.

Glimpsing Naruto's expectant stare from his rapidly fading vision, Minato was struck flat-footed. He was not ready for this.

_Don't even have a parting gift? Your own son?_

The message was clear. Minato gestured for him to come closer, which Naruto obeyed, a questioning hurt look in his eyes.

Minato debated doing this, but decided that the pain was well worth it if it would help his son survive. Self-preservation ended at parent-hood.

Naruto wasn't close enough, and Minato gestured for him to come even closer. He did this, albeit reluctantly, as if fearing something else, not from his father, but the shadows surrounding them. He shouldn't have underestimated his father's strength, especially with him on the level he was.

The gloved hand came up fast, much faster then Naruto could react; augmented by the last of his chakra, the jutsu shiki was applied forcefully in the form of a hard slap. Minato's chakra burned through the Hiraishin seal paper, bonding it to skin and flesh in a most painful fashion.

Naruto yelped, and lashed out instinctively, his clawed; _adult_ hands slashed through his father's throat.

_Not for long._

Realizing through the blinding pain that he had done the unthinkable, Naruto screamed out an unspeakable howl filled with utter loathing and hate further fueled by the demon within him, making Naruto a beacon for the ever watchful Sandaime.

Naruto never noticed the Shinigami leaving with his father's soul. The first and only to reach him was the Sandaime, noticing the body of the Fourth with a regretful gaze and in turn noticing Naruto, initially puzzled by this nude man's strange appearance.

Naruto turned to face Sarutobi, exposing the seal to him for the briefest instant before it vanished. The Third's eyes widened impossibly, putting the pieces together in seconds. "Oh, Naruto."

"Stop," A sharp glare from Naruto silenced his thoughts and fueled his regret.

"I understand now. I am to be a weapon." A reproachful stare to Sarutobi informed the retired Kage where his train of thought was heading. "I am to revel in slaughter, curse my enemies, and protect my associates. I will have no friends, only contemporaries and passing acquaintances."

Naruto fully faced Sarutobi, showing the Kage something he wished to never see again. The whole left side of the blonde's face was dominated by a hiraishin seal, apparently melted onto the flesh. Sarutobi knew from a glance that if he were to cut off Naruto's face, upon regeneration, the seal pattern would remain.

_Not for long._

Sarutobi, if but for his present company, would have wept. This _man_ here had been a child five minutes prior; would have had at least _some_ sense of childlike wonder; would have had innocence had it not been for his father.

_His fucking father._

_Not for long._

The Sandaime hardly noticed as the beleaguered summon disappeared beneath them and Naruto disappeared at an unreal speed.

The Sandaime truly cried that day on the Night of Blood, and resolved to make Naruto's life the best he could make it.

XXxxXX

Naruto stood suddenly, shattering his reverie, the reason being a growing accumulation of…paper...in the air. Oh yes, it was Konan. He remembered. He wasn't allowed to forget.

The paper enveloped him, and caught fire an instant later. 'She's gotten better.'

After a few seconds, the sole female member of Akatsuki let the stream of fire die out, revealing a pile of gray sand, and the metal of Naruto's hitai-ate left.

Konan's head turned to the left, and she fixated on a rock to the exclusion of all else.

A soundless pop, and an instant later, Konan's reverie was broken by a round house kick to the temple, followed by a tornado kick which delivered seven hundred pounds of force to her jaw, making it a butterfly kick.

Konan stumbled away, stunned. The strike was akin to getting smacked with a sledgehammer. With Konan's jaw broken, and her dignity in shambles, Naruto did not pursue a final blow.

"What does he want?" There was an edge of steel in his voice.

Her jaw creaked painfully as she said, "What he always has."

"World domination? Psshht. Get real. I'm closer to it then he ever will be." His voice deepened, and his eyes bled into red. "Leave now."

Konan's body disassembled itself into tiny individual sheets of paper, which took the form of butterflies, and blew away.

Her voice carried on the wind. "He has found another way."

Naruto's face contorted into a scowl, trying to puzzle out the cryptic statement. 'Found another way?'

What she said could only be applied to Pain's world-domination obsession, which meant that somehow Pain had circumvented a way around not having all of the bijuu in his possession. He never would have the kyuubi; it was dead or at least not living anymore.

It were these thoughts that plagued Naruto the rest of the way home.

**A/N: if you want to know what a tornado kick is...be resourceful and look it up on youtube.**

**Later,**

**Sixpaths**


	5. Possession of a Child

Orochimaru emerged from the earth, the chthonic shinobi wearing a dangerous scowl. Dangerous, at least, for those in his immediate presence.

Hearing of Itachi's death at the hands of Naruto had reached the snake, and when it did-following a tenebrous repast in which Kabuto attempted badinage-Orochimaru had been fit to be tied.

Ever since his attempted invasion many years prior, the Uzumaki brat had been a thorn in his side. Ruining his machinations at every turn-first by posing as a twelve-year old obsessed with orange, and ending with the murder of his nemesis-had put Orochimaru in countless tight spots he was not inclined to occupy again.

He remembered it as if it were yesterday-his attack upon team seven in the forest of death, the orange-loving brat heralding an appearance of Kyuubi with his anger-yet was vexed by one thing. The delinquent was different when his attempted assassination of the Third went awry due to said nuisance.

Not only different in terms of attitude, he seemed to grow a foot and several odd inches in the months time before the final exam. Was it all an illusion, one of Naruto's now infamous Kitsune-Genshou?

The snake was inclined to give credence to the latter, meaning Naruto had the upper hand from the beginning-a fact that proved to be a tough pill to swallow for such a prideful man as Orochimaru.

No longer, Orochimaru decided. It would end-his continued humiliation and sullied pride-with this. The possession of Uchiha Sasuke.

He found himself in front of his specialized compound, the one where the Uchiha was kept in isolation. When Orochimaru escorted Sasuke to this place at first, the Uchiha had refused to be kept in such "demeaning quarters". On a mordant reply from Orochimaru, Sasuke, with a sour expression painted upon his visage, had accepted.

In truth, since Sasuke's "incarceration" as Kabuto had jokingly put it, the snake had fed a subtle, untraceable gas throughout the compound. It was made from a combination of his blood and a sedative of Kabuto's composition.

It functioned as a gradual, mind-numbing tranquilizer to which Orochimaru was immune-it being made from his own blood. Sasuke, due to his calculations, should be at about half of his capacity having stayed in this compound for over a year. If he were fighting Sasuke, Kakashi would find him hardly a threat.

To be cautious-Orochimaru hadn't gotten where he was by relying on just one plan of action-he pulled a large purple pill from his pocket. It was a soldier pill of his design. It had been created, and implemented after watching the Akimichi's secret soldier pills in action.

It would effectively multiply his chakra to the level of a mid-bijuu, but would only last for a period of ten minutes, enough to enforce his Fushi Tensei, and subdue Sasuke completely before the violent crash attributed to the pill hit him.

He pocketed the pill-such measures were only necessary if the situation merited it. It was possible that Sasuke would be a complete pushover, but once again, he wasn't taking chances.

As his feet took him through the entrance, he paused at a slight hum-barely audible-that permeated the air.

The snake smirked.

The game was on.

Orochimaru bent over backwards as an ethereal Uchiha Sasuke passed over his contorted body, _Chidori_ already fizzing out. The inbred ninja twisted in midair, his right leg seeking refuge within Orochimaru's sternum. The snake caught the limb, and rising while ripping his arm down, slammed the Uchiha into the ground, the earth rippling and fracturing like a bullet through plaster.

The ninja in the crater dissipated into snakes, which promptly dissolved as if allergic to sunlight.

Orochimaru rose fully, saying, "Why are you fighting, Sasuke-kun? You could never reach Itachi without me. Are you really willing to harm the only thing between you and humiliation in a pointless melee?"

The snake-nin was answered promptly, via katana through the chest. Sasuke stood behind his current mentor, hand gripping tightly to his imitation Kusanagi.

"I realized a year ago that you don't have my best interests at heart."

Orochimaru smirked cruelly, "How'd you like it? My best concoction to date."

The retort was quick in coming, "No more threatening then a lone ant in the face of the Sharingan. Your blood had minute amounts of chakra still in it, which I was able to detect in the form of a black cloud that permeated almost every room in the complex. Easily solved by a _Fuuton_ jutsu, dobe," Sasuke smirked arrogantly, "Even _Naruto_ could see through it."

Orochimaru's smile turned from cruel to insane with the susurrus whispering of the last sentence. How great life was, "That's the thing with staying in hiding for extensive amounts of time. You miss out on the world's most important events."

Sasuke's expression went from mocking to guarded in an instant, "What do you mean by that?" he asked cautiously.

"Your brother's dead," Orochimaru was grinning like a Cheshire cat by now, "Killed by your _dobe _of a team-mate, even! Imagine that! Uchiha Sasuke being outdone. The world must be ending!" The snake's cruel laughter echoed the halls of the compound.

"Lies," Sasuke hissed, his eyes concealed from the snake briefly, "that's not possible."

"Were you even listening? I just told you that your brother is de-"

"SHUT UP!" Sasuke screamed, his voice a collection of pain, hate, and ill-concealed jealousy. He wrenched his blade downward, cutting through the snake's groin and looked Orochimaru in the eye, transporting him to the realm of Tsukuyomi.

The serpent was immediately bound to a cross and stabbed through his midsection.

Upon no noise uttered from the snake, Sasuke lifted the head up by his hair, noticing that his eyes were solid grey with no pupil to speak of.

The mud-clone dissolved, and with it, Tsukuyomi.

Not even a second had passed in the real world, but it was enough time for Orochimaru to prepare a technique.

A gigantic snake that took up most of the hallway with its girth sped forward at an unreal speed towards the Uchiha. Sasuke raised his sword, and an instant later, a spear of lightning ran the serpent through from snout to tail, almost piercing Orochimaru. Another twist of Sasuke's wrist saw the blade of lightning about to bisect the snake-nin. Orochimaru did an aerial-his hand darting down with wind chakra coating it, effectively diffusing the lightning like snuffing out bothersome embers.

About to make land, the serpent-nin threw his hand out, a snake shooting out from his sleeve. The reptile opened its maw; a sword sliding out of its throat-venom heavily coated the blade.

Sasuke's lightning blade was rapidly receding, but not fast enough that he would be able to block the incoming snake. He resorted to a move he saw Kakashi use once against the former earth-nin and current Akatsuki member Deidara: Kamui.

Reality distorted obscenely, the room becoming a mad artist's pipedream as Sasuke's newly created, and localized black-hole swallowed the summoned snake. It disappeared along with half of the hallway. Sasuke's sword had not been spared, half of it being caught within the vortex, leaving the blade irreparable.

The evanescent distortion in reality gone, Orochimaru swept in with the practiced grace of a veteran in his field. The first punch was blocked feebly-Sasuke, still drained from using two Mangekyo Sharingan techniques in quick-succesion could barely keep his hands from shaking as his eyes seeped blood.

A roundhouse kick to the temple, followed by a brutal, right handed haymaker sent Sasuke stumbling back, clutching his now broken nose. "It is pointless to resist, Sasuke-kun. Your curse seal is rendered useless in my presence. You have nothing left- give up." The sannin sounded strangely apathetic.

"Not yet, I have something left. You just can't see it in your limited, _human_ perspective." Sasuke uttered spitefully, placing specific emphasis on human. He was desperate now.

"Your efforts to entice me to do something rash-something an Uchiha like yourself would resort to-amuse me. At best, a feeble effort. One who can do nothing can appreciate nothing, immature insect. Know your place in this world, insolent whelp and appreciate pain, for it is kinder than I.

"My solace turned me into what you see before you-the comfort in grief, so unattainable in this cultural zeitgeist." The snake giggled madly, and Sasuke had a brief glimpse into what his body would be part of if he gave up.

**No.**

The word was ersatz, yet fulfilling and ultimately satisfying-briefly giving the Uchiha the illusion that he could fight back against this monster connected to the world of humans by flesh alone; as puerile as Orochimaru had declared.

Orochimaru spat something dark and nebulous onto the floor, which rapidly rose into a towering figure made of pure white snakes.

The beast's triple jaw was a mockery of Orochimaru's original form.

"You're insane." Sasuke said with an anxious edge to it.

"Insanity is a perfectly rational adjustment to an insane world," the snake cackled gleefully. "Now, you die."

The Sannin's jaw opened insanely wide and swallowed Sasuke whole.

Sasuke stood atop a floor of fleshy, vaguely organic material. Orochimaru emerged from the ground, covered in the slime, laughing.

"What is this," Sasuke asked, his guard up, "disgusting place?"

"A realm inside of my body that I created for the application of my Fushi Tensei." Orochimaru cackled again, his one visible eye was bloodshot.

From his side, a hand emerged from the fleshy mass, clutching something. It was the large purple pill. Sasuke's voice rung clear, "Whatever you're attempting, my Sharingan will see through it. The greatest genius in the world comes off as barely average before the Uchiha."

"Big words from such a small man," Orochimaru taunted, "Perhaps if you were such a genius you would have killed your brother already."

Sasuke bristled, "An antediluvian wretch such as you already knows defeat from such a man," his face contorted into a sneer. "Avarice led you to attempt to get hold of my brother's body, and in turn, you were defeated just like all others."

"I tire of this childish banter. I shall take your body. Your eyes shall become my own." Orochimaru popped the pill into his mouth and started chewing.

"Goodbye, Uchiha."

The effects were immediate. Sasuke was rooted to the spot by a malevolent chakra that dwarfed the Ichibi several-fold. Gigantic manifestations of flesh enveloped Sasuke, burying him, covering his eyes, but leaving his face exposed.

Tendrils several feet wide flew from Orochimaru to Sasuke, pulling hard, and bringing the masses of fleshy material together. Briefly, upon the floor of tissue, Orochimaru's former hosts could be seen. The woman he had first occupied, the blue haired man, and finally, Ebisu who had, coincidentally stumbled upon his compound in northern Rice Country and had been promptly been used by a desperate Orochimaru.

Sasuke, in a final, agonizing, child-like scream-a last reflection of the lonely eight year old who stumbled upon his parent's bodies all those years ago-was absorbed by the inexorable serpent.

It was an hour later when Orochimaru stumbled into Kabuto's quarters.

What had transpired was left unsaid.

The medic wordlessly bandaged Orochimaru's body, repairing damage and cleaning dirt from the snake's new Uchiha body.

The snake left when Kabuto was finished. Nothing was said-nothing needed to be.

Kabuto was loyal to the snake due to one simple detail: They both had something the other wanted-Orochimaru for his need of medical ninjutsu, and Kabuto for his yen of company.

Jinchuriki were such lonely creatures after all.

**How many of you expected THAT? If you don't get what I mean, read the last two paragraphs for clarification. See ya.**


End file.
